Roman Abramovich 'can't pay' the £10,000 rent he may owe the Queen for the land his mansion sits on, it has been reported. Britain has sanctioned nearly two dozen Russian oligarchs with with alleged links to Vladimir Putin’s regime, and added Chelsea FC owner Abramovich to the list on Thursday last week.
The sanctions include a total freezing of Abramovich's assets, including Chelsea football club. But the Daily Star has reported that he is unable to pay rent for the Crown Estate land that his 15-bedroom Kensington mansion sits on.
The £150 million mansion was built in 1848 on land owned by the Crown Estate, which oversees a massive portfolio of land and other assets on behalf of the monarchy. The London estate is close to Kensington Palace, home to Prince William, Kate Middleton, and their children.
Some report suggest the mansion is worth £150 million, while others price it at £107 million. The oligarch potentially owes the Queen a £10,000 yearly sum under a 125-year lease, as the land belongs to the Crown Estate. The Daily Star reports the sum will reportedly rise to £160,000-a-year at a later date.
Now that he has been sanctioned and his wealth has been frozen, his money will no longer be accepted. In previous months, aware of the risk, he attempted to sell the property but was unsuccessful. If he cannot pay the Queen, the Crown Estate could sue the Blues owner and even confiscate the property.
The Crown Estate is a collection of lands and holdings belonging to the British monarch as a corporation sole, making it ‘the sovereign’s public estate’. It generates revenue for the government, but does not belong to the government, and is not the private property of the Queen. The Royal Family is not involved in its governance.
The independent commercial business has a diverse portfolio of UK buildings, common land, agriculture, forestry, shoreline, and seabed. Assets include The Savoy, Balmoral Castle, Sandingham House, Ascot Racecourse, Windsor Castle, Regent Street and St James' Market in London.
The new financial difficulties follow Abramovich being unable to sell Chelsea football club while it is limited in expenditure and income sources. Those with season tickets and existing tickets for games have still been allowed to attend games, but the club cannot make money from the sale of any more tickets. The oligarch was also disqualified as Stamford Bridge director by the Premier League.
Abramovich did not respond to the sanctions announcement and his lawyers stated, prior to the invasion of Ukraine, that he would not fit the criteria for sanctions. They said it was: "ludicrous to suggest that our client has any responsibility or influence over the behaviour of the Russian state".
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